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National Museum of Natural History

There are about 160,000 species of moths and butterflies worldwide, each with unique characteristics. (Smithsonian)

Seven Bizarre Moths to Celebrate National Moth Week

These are the coolest and most unusual moths in the Smithsonian’s collections.

From forests to fish to flakes of snow, the science behind ice cream reaches beyond the cone. (Taryn Ellio)

The Strangely Scientific Endeavor of Making Ice Cream

Ice cream's texture is the result of the same processes that govern concepts like forest recovery, rock formation and sub-zero survival in animals.

Chris Meyer, a marine invertebrate zoologist at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History, dives around French Polynesia with equipment used to track coral reef health. (Jenny Adler)

Meet the Reef Expert Collecting Environmental Time Capsules

Collecting DNA in waters worldwide can help scientists figure out which places are the most important for conservation.

“Unsettled Nature” features artworks by Bethany Taylor and six other contemporary artists that show how humans have changed nature. (James Di Loreto, Smithsonian)

Artists Show Human Impact on the Planet in New Exhibit

The exhibition raises the question of what is “natural” in a world dominated by humans.

Two-toed sloths (Choloepus hoffmanni) live in the canopy layer of the Panamanian rainforest. Find out why in a family program streaming July 17. (Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Punta Culebra Nature Center)

Five Free Natural History Programs Streaming in July

Stream these free programs and more this July through the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History

Head scientist at the Smithsonian Marine Station, Valerie Paul, collects blue-green algae samples to study the chemicals they emit. Those chemicals can endanger coral reefs, but also have biomedical potential. (Raphael Ritson-Williams)

Meet the Marine Scientist Studying How Algae Communicates

Valerie Paul's work adds to scientists’ knowledge about the ways marine biochemicals can potentially help restore coral reefs and create new biomedicine.

A giant replica of the Aedes mosquito, a known vector for the disease yellow fever, has been waiting for visitors to return the National Museum of Natural History’s “Outbreak: Epidemics in a Connected World” exhibit. (James Di Loreto, Smithsonian)

Don’t Miss These Objects When the Smithsonian's Natural History Museum Reopens

Whether you're a seasoned visitor or a newbie to the natural history museum, there are plenty of things for you to explore.

This jellyfish, Scolionema suvaense, was raised in the National Museum of Natural History’s Invertebrate Zoology “AquaRoom.” Here, the species is sinking through food with its tentacles spread wide. (Allen Collins, Smithsonian)

Live Jellyfish Make a Splash in Marine Education

Smithsonian's AquaRoom helps scientists learn more about these animals’ lives and educate future generations about their marine neighbors.

While this year’s Arctic sea ice extended further than last year’s, there still wasn’t as much of it as there was only two decades ago. Thinner and younger sea ice in winter and less ice in the summer are two of the many elements of the Arctic’s new reality. (Credit: Patrick Kelley, U.S. Coast Guard. Public domain.)

Climate Change Redefines What 'Normal' Means in the Arctic

As Earth’s climate changes, people around the world are witnessing insidious changes and responding to their new normal.

Discover why and how seabirds, like the parasitic jaeger, migrate in a virtual program on June 8. (Per Harald Olsen/NTNU, CC BY 2.0)

Five Free Natural History Programs Streaming in June

Stream these free programs from the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History this June.

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